Reporting potential virtual anchor locations for improved positioning

ABSTRACT

Disclosed are techniques for wireless positioning. In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) determines a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP), determines a first additional positioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RF signal, determines a second additional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of the RF signal, and transmits a measurement report to a location server, the measurement report including at least the positioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with the first additional positioning measurement and the second additional positioning measurement.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE 1. Field of the Disclosure

Aspects of the disclosure relate generally to wireless communications.

2. Description of the Related Art

Wireless communication systems have developed through variousgenerations, including a first-generation analog wireless phone service(1G), a second-generation (2G) digital wireless phone service (includinginterim 2.5G and 2.75G networks), a third-generation (3G) high speeddata, Internet-capable wireless service and a fourth-generation (4G)service (e.g., Long Term Evolution (LTE) or WiMax). There are presentlymany different types of wireless communication systems in use, includingcellular and personal communications service (PCS) systems. Examples ofknown cellular systems include the cellular analog advanced mobile phonesystem (AMPS), and digital cellular systems based on code divisionmultiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), timedivision multiple access (TDMA), the Global System for Mobilecommunications (GSM), etc.

A fifth generation (5G) wireless standard, referred to as New Radio(NR), calls for higher data transfer speeds, greater numbers ofconnections, and better coverage, among other improvements. The 5Gstandard, according to the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance, isdesigned to provide data rates of several tens of megabits per second toeach of tens of thousands of users, with 1 gigabit per second to tens ofworkers on an office floor. Several hundreds of thousands ofsimultaneous connections should be supported in order to support largesensor deployments. Consequently, the spectral efficiency of 5G mobilecommunications should be significantly enhanced compared to the current4G standard. Furthermore, signaling efficiencies should be enhanced andlatency should be substantially reduced compared to current standards.

SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary relating to one or moreaspects disclosed herein. Thus, the following summary should not beconsidered an extensive overview relating to all contemplated aspects,nor should the following summary be considered to identify key orcritical elements relating to all contemplated aspects or to delineatethe scope associated with any particular aspect. Accordingly, thefollowing summary has the sole purpose to present certain conceptsrelating to one or more aspects relating to the mechanisms disclosedherein in a simplified form to precede the detailed descriptionpresented below.

In an aspect, a method of wireless positioning performed by a userequipment (UE) includes determining a positioning measurement of a firstmultipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by atransmission-reception point (TRP); determining a first additionalpositioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RFsignal; determining a second additional positioning measurement of athird multipath component of the RF signal; and transmitting ameasurement report to a location server, the measurement reportincluding at least the positioning measurement, the first additionalpositioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement,and one or more parameters associated with the first additionalpositioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement.

In an aspect, a method of wireless positioning performed by a userequipment (UE) includes determining an estimated location of a virtualtransmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physical TRP based,at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) of one or morenon-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radiofrequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; andtransmitting, to a positioning entity, the estimated location of thevirtual TRP.

In an aspect, a method of wireless positioning performed by a userequipment (UE) includes receiving assistance data for a positioningsession from a positioning entity, the assistance data including alocation of at least one physical transmission-reception point (TRP) anda location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least onephysical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmitone or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or moreradio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physicalTRP; and estimating a location of the UE based, at least in part, on thelocation of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP,measurements of one or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components ofthe one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipathcomponents of the one or more RF signals.

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes a memory; at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to thememory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processorconfigured to: determine a positioning measurement of a first multipathcomponent of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by atransmission-reception point (TRP); determine a first additionalpositioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RFsignal; determine a second additional positioning measurement of a thirdmultipath component of the RF signal; and transmit, via the at least onetransceiver, a measurement report to a location server, the measurementreport including at least the positioning measurement, the firstadditional positioning measurement, the second additional positioningmeasurement, and one or more parameters associated with the firstadditional positioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement.

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes a memory; at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to thememory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processorconfigured to: determine an estimated location of a virtualtransmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physical TRP based,at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) of one or morenon-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radiofrequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; and transmit,via the at least one transceiver, to a positioning entity, the estimatedlocation of the virtual TRP.

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes a memory; at least onetransceiver; and at least one processor communicatively coupled to thememory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processorconfigured to: receive, via the at least one transceiver, assistancedata for a positioning session from a positioning entity, the assistancedata including a location of at least one physicaltransmission-reception point (TRP) and a location of at least onevirtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, wherein theat least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or morenon-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radiofrequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; andestimate a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the locationof the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements ofone or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components of the one or moreRF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one ormore RF signals.

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for determining apositioning measurement of a first multipath component of a radiofrequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-reception point(TRP); means for determining a first additional positioning measurementof a second multipath component of the RF signal; means for determininga second additional positioning measurement of a third multipathcomponent of the RF signal; and means for transmitting a measurementreport to a location server, the measurement report including at leastthe positioning measurement, the first additional positioningmeasurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one ormore parameters associated with the first additional positioningmeasurement and the second additional positioning measurement.

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for determining anestimated location of a virtual transmission-reception point (TRP)associated with a physical TRP based, at least in part, on one or moretimes of flight (ToFs) of one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipathcomponents of one or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted bythe physical TRP; and means for transmitting, to a positioning entity,the estimated location of the virtual TRP.

In an aspect, a user equipment (UE) includes means for receivingassistance data for a positioning session from a positioning entity, theassistance data including a location of at least one physicaltransmission-reception point (TRP) and a location of at least onevirtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, wherein theat least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or morenon-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radiofrequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; andmeans for estimating a location of the UE based, at least in part, onthe location of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP,measurements of one or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components ofthe one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipathcomponents of the one or more RF signals.

In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storescomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment(UE), cause the UE to: determine a positioning measurement of a firstmultipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by atransmission-reception point (TRP); determine a first additionalpositioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RFsignal; determine a second additional positioning measurement of a thirdmultipath component of the RF signal; and transmit a measurement reportto a location server, the measurement report including at least thepositioning measurement, the first additional positioning measurement,the second additional positioning measurement, and one or moreparameters associated with the first additional positioning measurementand the second additional positioning measurement.

In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storescomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment(UE), cause the UE to: determine an estimated location of a virtualtransmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physical TRP based,at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) of one or morenon-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radiofrequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; and transmit, toa positioning entity, the estimated location of the virtual TRP.

In an aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storescomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by a user equipment(UE), cause the UE to: receive assistance data for a positioning sessionfrom a positioning entity, the assistance data including a location ofat least one physical transmission-reception point (TRP) and a locationof at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least one physicalTRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one ormore non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radiofrequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; andestimate a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the locationof the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements ofone or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components of the one or moreRF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one ormore RF signals.

Other objects and advantages associated with the aspects disclosedherein will be apparent to those skilled in the art based on theaccompanying drawings and detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are presented to aid in the description ofvarious aspects of the disclosure and are provided solely forillustration of the aspects and not limitation thereof.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless communications system, accordingto aspects of the disclosure.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate example wireless network structures,according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C are simplified block diagrams of several sampleaspects of components that may be employed in a user equipment (UE), abase station, and a network entity, respectively, and configured tosupport communications as taught herein.

FIG. 4 illustrates examples of various positioning methods supported inNew Radio (NR), according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a graph representing a radio frequency (RF) channel impulseresponse over time, according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between a virtualanchor and the real anchor, according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the consistency of a virtual anchorlocation with respect to a reflecting surface with UE mobility andmultiple UEs, according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a multiple reflector scenario with avirtual anchor, according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the effect of scattering entities withrespect to a reflecting surface, according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the time-of-flight (ToF)-onlytechnique, according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example information element for reportingmeasurements, according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 12 illustrates an example additional path list information element,according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIG. 13 illustrates an assistance data information element that includesthe estimated location of a virtual anchor and an associateduncertainty, according to aspects of the disclosure.

FIGS. 14 to 17 illustrate example methods of positioning, according toaspects of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the disclosure are provided in the following description andrelated drawings directed to various examples provided for illustrationpurposes. Alternate aspects may be devised without departing from thescope of the disclosure. Additionally, well-known elements of thedisclosure will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as notto obscure the relevant details of the disclosure.

The words “exemplary” and/or “example” are used herein to mean “servingas an example, instance, or illustration.” Any aspect described hereinas “exemplary” and/or “example” is not necessarily to be construed aspreferred or advantageous over other aspects. Likewise, the term“aspects of the disclosure” does not require that all aspects of thedisclosure include the discussed feature, advantage or mode ofoperation.

Those of skill in the art will appreciate that the information andsignals described below may be represented using any of a variety ofdifferent technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions,commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may bereferenced throughout the description below may be represented byvoltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles,optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof, depending inpart on the particular application, in part on the desired design, inpart on the corresponding technology, etc.

Further, many aspects are described in terms of sequences of actions tobe performed by, for example, elements of a computing device. It will berecognized that various actions described herein can be performed byspecific circuits (e.g., application specific integrated circuits(ASICs)), by program instructions being executed by one or moreprocessors, or by a combination of both. Additionally, the sequence(s)of actions described herein can be considered to be embodied entirelywithin any form of non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumhaving stored therein a corresponding set of computer instructions that,upon execution, would cause or instruct an associated processor of adevice to perform the functionality described herein. Thus, the variousaspects of the disclosure may be embodied in a number of differentforms, all of which have been contemplated to be within the scope of theclaimed subject matter. In addition, for each of the aspects describedherein, the corresponding form of any such aspects may be describedherein as, for example, “logic configured to” perform the describedaction.

As used herein, the terms “user equipment” (UE) and “base station” arenot intended to be specific or otherwise limited to any particular radioaccess technology (RAT), unless otherwise noted. In general, a UE may beany wireless communication device (e.g., a mobile phone, router, tabletcomputer, laptop computer, consumer asset locating device, wearable(e.g., smartwatch, glasses, augmented reality (AR)/virtual reality (VR)headset, etc.), vehicle (e.g., automobile, motorcycle, bicycle, etc.),Internet of Things (IoT) device, etc.) used by a user to communicateover a wireless communications network. A UE may be mobile or may (e.g.,at certain times) be stationary, and may communicate with a radio accessnetwork (RAN). As used herein, the term “UE” may be referred tointerchangeably as an “access terminal” or “AT,” a “client device,” a“wireless device,” a “subscriber device,” a “subscriber terminal,” a“subscriber station,” a “user terminal” or “UT,” a “mobile device,” a“mobile terminal,” a “mobile station,” or variations thereof. Generally,UEs can communicate with a core network via a RAN, and through the corenetwork the UEs can be connected with external networks such as theInternet and with other UEs. Of course, other mechanisms of connectingto the core network and/or the Internet are also possible for the UEs,such as over wired access networks, wireless local area network (WLAN)networks (e.g., based on the Institute of Electrical and ElectronicsEngineers (IEEE) 802.11 specification, etc.) and so on.

A base station may operate according to one of several RATs incommunication with UEs depending on the network in which it is deployed,and may be alternatively referred to as an access point (AP), a networknode, a NodeB, an evolved NodeB (eNB), a next generation eNB (ng-eNB), aNew Radio (NR) Node B (also referred to as a gNB or gNodeB), etc. A basestation may be used primarily to support wireless access by UEs,including supporting data, voice, and/or signaling connections for thesupported UEs. In some systems a base station may provide purely edgenode signaling functions while in other systems it may provideadditional control and/or network management functions. A communicationlink through which UEs can send signals to a base station is called anuplink (UL) channel (e.g., a reverse traffic channel, a reverse controlchannel, an access channel, etc.). A communication link through whichthe base station can send signals to UEs is called a downlink (DL) orforward link channel (e.g., a paging channel, a control channel, abroadcast channel, a forward traffic channel, etc.). As used herein theterm traffic channel (TCH) can refer to either an uplink/reverse ordownlink/forward traffic channel.

The term “base station” may refer to a single physicaltransmission-reception point (TRP) or to multiple physical TRPs that mayor may not be co-located. For example, where the term “base station”refers to a single physical TRP, the physical TRP may be an antenna ofthe base station corresponding to a cell (or several cell sectors) ofthe base station. Where the term “base station” refers to multipleco-located physical TRPs, the physical TRPs may be an array of antennas(e.g., as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) system or where thebase station employs beamforming) of the base station. Where the term“base station” refers to multiple non-co-located physical TRPs, thephysical TRPs may be a distributed antenna system (DAS) (a network ofspatially separated antennas connected to a common source via atransport medium) or a remote radio head (RRH) (a remote base stationconnected to a serving base station). Alternatively, the non-co-locatedphysical TRPs may be the serving base station receiving the measurementreport from the UE and a neighbor base station whose reference radiofrequency (RF) signals the UE is measuring. Because a TRP is the pointfrom which a base station transmits and receives wireless signals, asused herein, references to transmission from or reception at a basestation are to be understood as referring to a particular TRP of thebase station.

In some implementations that support positioning of UEs, a base stationmay not support wireless access by UEs (e.g., may not support data,voice, and/or signaling connections for UEs), but may instead transmitreference signals to UEs to be measured by the UEs, and/or may receiveand measure signals transmitted by the UEs. Such a base station may bereferred to as a positioning beacon (e.g., when transmitting signals toUEs) and/or as a location measurement unit (e.g., when receiving andmeasuring signals from UEs).

An “RF signal” comprises an electromagnetic wave (or waveform) of agiven frequency that transports information through the space between atransmitter and a receiver. As used herein, a transmitter may transmit asingle “RF signal” or multiple “RF signals” to a receiver. However, thereceiver may receive multiple “RF signals” corresponding to eachtransmitted RF signal due to the propagation characteristics of RFsignals through multipath channels. The same transmitted RF signal ondifferent paths between the transmitter and receiver may be referred toas a “multipath” RF signal. As used herein, an RF signal may also bereferred to as a “wireless signal” or simply a “signal” where it isclear from the context that the term “signal” refers to a wirelesssignal or an RF signal.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless communications system 100,according to aspects of the disclosure. The wireless communicationssystem 100 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide areanetwork (WWAN)) may include various base stations 102 (labeled “BS”) andvarious UEs 104. The base stations 102 may include macro cell basestations (high power cellular base stations) and/or small cell basestations (low power cellular base stations). In an aspect, the macrocell base stations may include eNBs and/or ng-eNBs where the wirelesscommunications system 100 corresponds to an LTE network, or gNBs wherethe wireless communications system 100 corresponds to a NR network, or acombination of both, and the small cell base stations may includefemtocells, picocells, microcells, etc.

The base stations 102 may collectively form a RAN and interface with acore network 170 (e.g., an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC))through backhaul links 122, and through the core network 170 to one ormore location servers 172 (e.g., a location management function (LMF) ora secure user plane location (SUPL) location platform (SLP)). Thelocation server(s) 172 may be part of core network 170 or may beexternal to core network 170. In addition to other functions, the basestations 102 may perform functions that relate to one or more oftransferring user data, radio channel ciphering and deciphering,integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions(e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interferencecoordination, connection setup and release, load balancing, distributionfor non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection,synchronization, RAN sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service(MBMS), subscriber and equipment trace, RAN information management(RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. The basestations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly(e.g., through the EPC/5GC) over backhaul links 134, which may be wiredor wireless.

The base stations 102 may wirelessly communicate with the UEs 104. Eachof the base stations 102 may provide communication coverage for arespective geographic coverage area 110. In an aspect, one or more cellsmay be supported by a base station 102 in each geographic coverage area110. A “cell” is a logical communication entity used for communicationwith a base station (e.g., over some frequency resource, referred to asa carrier frequency, component carrier, carrier, band, or the like), andmay be associated with an identifier (e.g., a physical cell identifier(PCI), an enhanced cell identifier (ECI), a virtual cell identifier(VCI), a cell global identifier (CGI), etc.) for distinguishing cellsoperating via the same or a different carrier frequency. In some cases,different cells may be configured according to different protocol types(e.g., machine-type communication (MTC), narrowband IoT (NB-IoT),enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), or others) that may provide access fordifferent types of UEs. Because a cell is supported by a specific basestation, the term “cell” may refer to either or both of the logicalcommunication entity and the base station that supports it, depending onthe context. In addition, because a TRP is typically the physicaltransmission point of a cell, the terms “cell” and “TRP” may be usedinterchangeably. In some cases, the term “cell” may also refer to ageographic coverage area of a base station (e.g., a sector), insofar asa carrier frequency can be detected and used for communication withinsome portion of geographic coverage areas 110.

While neighboring macro cell base station 102 geographic coverage areas110 may partially overlap (e.g., in a handover region), some of thegeographic coverage areas 110 may be substantially overlapped by alarger geographic coverage area 110. For example, a small cell basestation 102′ (labeled “SC” for “small cell”) may have a geographiccoverage area 110′ that substantially overlaps with the geographiccoverage area 110 of one or more macro cell base stations 102. A networkthat includes both small cell and macro cell base stations may be knownas a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also includehome eNBs (HeNBs), which may provide service to a restricted group knownas a closed subscriber group (CSG).

The communication links 120 between the base stations 102 and the UEs104 may include uplink (also referred to as reverse link) transmissionsfrom a UE 104 to a base station 102 and/or downlink (DL) (also referredto as forward link) transmissions from a base station 102 to a UE 104.The communication links 120 may use MIMO antenna technology, includingspatial multiplexing, beamforming, and/or transmit diversity. Thecommunication links 120 may be through one or more carrier frequencies.Allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to downlink anduplink (e.g., more or less carriers may be allocated for downlink thanfor uplink).

The wireless communications system 100 may further include a wirelesslocal area network (WLAN) access point (AP) 150 in communication withWLAN stations (STAs) 152 via communication links 154 in an unlicensedfrequency spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz). When communicating in an unlicensedfrequency spectrum, the WLAN STAs 152 and/or the WLAN AP 150 may performa clear channel assessment (CCA) or listen before talk (LBT) procedureprior to communicating in order to determine whether the channel isavailable.

The small cell base station 102′ may operate in a licensed and/or anunlicensed frequency spectrum. When operating in an unlicensed frequencyspectrum, the small cell base station 102′ may employ LTE or NRtechnology and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed frequency spectrum as usedby the WLAN AP 150. The small cell base station 102′, employing LTE/5Gin an unlicensed frequency spectrum, may boost coverage to and/orincrease capacity of the access network. NR in unlicensed spectrum maybe referred to as NR-U. LTE in an unlicensed spectrum may be referred toas LTE-U, licensed assisted access (LAA), or MulteFire.

The wireless communications system 100 may further include a millimeterwave (mmW) base station 180 that may operate in mmW frequencies and/ornear mmW frequencies in communication with a UE 182. Extremely highfrequency (EHF) is part of the RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHFhas a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between 1 millimeterand 10 millimeters. Radio waves in this band may be referred to as amillimeter wave. Near mmW may extend down to a frequency of 3 GHz with awavelength of 100 millimeters. The super high frequency (SHF) bandextends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz, also referred to as centimeter wave.Communications using the mmW/near mmW radio frequency band have highpath loss and a relatively short range. The mmW base station 180 and theUE 182 may utilize beamforming (transmit and/or receive) over a mmWcommunication link 184 to compensate for the extremely high path lossand short range. Further, it will be appreciated that in alternativeconfigurations, one or more base stations 102 may also transmit usingmmW or near mmW and beamforming. Accordingly, it will be appreciatedthat the foregoing illustrations are merely examples and should not beconstrued to limit the various aspects disclosed herein.

Transmit beamforming is a technique for focusing an RF signal in aspecific direction. Traditionally, when a network node (e.g., a basestation) broadcasts an RF signal, it broadcasts the signal in alldirections (omni-directionally). With transmit beamforming, the networknode determines where a given target device (e.g., a UE) is located(relative to the transmitting network node) and projects a strongerdownlink RF signal in that specific direction, thereby providing afaster (in terms of data rate) and stronger RF signal for the receivingdevice(s). To change the directionality of the RF signal whentransmitting, a network node can control the phase and relativeamplitude of the RF signal at each of the one or more transmitters thatare broadcasting the RF signal. For example, a network node may use anarray of antennas (referred to as a “phased array” or an “antennaarray”) that creates a beam of RF waves that can be “steered” to pointin different directions, without actually moving the antennas.Specifically, the RF current from the transmitter is fed to theindividual antennas with the correct phase relationship so that theradio waves from the separate antennas add together to increase theradiation in a desired direction, while cancelling to suppress radiationin undesired directions.

Transmit beams may be quasi-co-located, meaning that they appear to thereceiver (e.g., a UE) as having the same parameters, regardless ofwhether or not the transmitting antennas of the network node themselvesare physically co-located. In NR, there are four types ofquasi-co-location (QCL) relations. Specifically, a QCL relation of agiven type means that certain parameters about a second reference RFsignal on a second beam can be derived from information about a sourcereference RF signal on a source beam. Thus, if the source reference RFsignal is QCL Type A, the receiver can use the source reference RFsignal to estimate the Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, anddelay spread of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the samechannel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL Type B, the receivercan use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift andDoppler spread of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the samechannel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL Type C, the receivercan use the source reference RF signal to estimate the Doppler shift andaverage delay of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the samechannel. If the source reference RF signal is QCL Type D, the receivercan use the source reference RF signal to estimate the spatial receiveparameter of a second reference RF signal transmitted on the samechannel.

In receive beamforming, the receiver uses a receive beam to amplify RFsignals detected on a given channel. For example, the receiver canincrease the gain setting and/or adjust the phase setting of an array ofantennas in a particular direction to amplify (e.g., to increase thegain level of) the RF signals received from that direction. Thus, when areceiver is said to beamform in a certain direction, it means the beamgain in that direction is high relative to the beam gain along otherdirections, or the beam gain in that direction is the highest comparedto the beam gain in that direction of all other receive beams availableto the receiver. This results in a stronger received signal strength(e.g., reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal receivedquality (RSRQ), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), etc.) ofthe RF signals received from that direction.

Transmit and receive beams may be spatially related. A spatial relationmeans that parameters for a second beam (e.g., a transmit or receivebeam) for a second reference signal can be derived from informationabout a first beam (e.g., a receive beam or a transmit beam) for a firstreference signal. For example, a UE may use a particular receive beam toreceive a reference downlink reference signal (e.g., synchronizationsignal block (SSB)) from a base station. The UE can then form a transmitbeam for sending an uplink reference signal (e.g., sounding referencesignal (SRS)) to that base station based on the parameters of thereceive beam.

Note that a “downlink” beam may be either a transmit beam or a receivebeam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a base stationis forming the downlink beam to transmit a reference signal to a UE, thedownlink beam is a transmit beam. If the UE is forming the downlinkbeam, however, it is a receive beam to receive the downlink referencesignal. Similarly, an “uplink” beam may be either a transmit beam or areceive beam, depending on the entity forming it. For example, if a basestation is forming the uplink beam, it is an uplink receive beam, and ifa UE is forming the uplink beam, it is an uplink transmit beam.

In 5G, the frequency spectrum in which wireless nodes (e.g., basestations 102/180, UEs 104/182) operate is divided into multiplefrequency ranges, FR1 (from 450 to 6000 MHz), FR2 (from 24250 to 52600MHz), FR3 (above 52600 MHz), and FR4 (between FR1 and FR2). mmWfrequency bands generally include the FR2, FR3, and FR4 frequencyranges. As such, the terms “mmW” and “FR2” or “FR3” or “FR4” maygenerally be used interchangeably.

In a multi-carrier system, such as 5G, one of the carrier frequencies isreferred to as the “primary carrier” or “anchor carrier” or “primaryserving cell” or “PCell,” and the remaining carrier frequencies arereferred to as “secondary carriers” or “secondary serving cells” or“SCells.” In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrieroperating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by a UE 104/182and the cell in which the UE 104/182 either performs the initial radioresource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiatesthe RRC connection re-establishment procedure. The primary carriercarries all common and UE-specific control channels, and may be acarrier in a licensed frequency (however, this is not always the case).A secondary carrier is a carrier operating on a second frequency (e.g.,FR2) that may be configured once the RRC connection is establishedbetween the UE 104 and the anchor carrier and that may be used toprovide additional radio resources. In some cases, the secondary carriermay be a carrier in an unlicensed frequency. The secondary carrier maycontain only necessary signaling information and signals, for example,those that are UE-specific may not be present in the secondary carrier,since both primary uplink and downlink carriers are typicallyUE-specific. This means that different UEs 104/182 in a cell may havedifferent downlink primary carriers. The same is true for the uplinkprimary carriers. The network is able to change the primary carrier ofany UE 104/182 at any time. This is done, for example, to balance theload on different carriers. Because a “serving cell” (whether a PCell oran SCell) corresponds to a carrier frequency/component carrier overwhich some base station is communicating, the term “cell,” “servingcell,” “component carrier,” “carrier frequency,” and the like can beused interchangeably.

For example, still referring to FIG. 1 , one of the frequencies utilizedby the macro cell base stations 102 may be an anchor carrier (or“PCell”) and other frequencies utilized by the macro cell base stations102 and/or the mmW base station 180 may be secondary carriers(“SCells”). The simultaneous transmission and/or reception of multiplecarriers enables the UE 104/182 to significantly increase its datatransmission and/or reception rates. For example, two 20 MHz aggregatedcarriers in a multi-carrier system would theoretically lead to atwo-fold increase in data rate (i.e., 40 MHz), compared to that attainedby a single 20 MHz carrier.

The wireless communications system 100 may further include a UE 164 thatmay communicate with a macro cell base station 102 over a communicationlink 120 and/or the mmW base station 180 over a mmW communication link184. For example, the macro cell base station 102 may support a PCelland one or more SCells for the UE 164 and the mmW base station 180 maysupport one or more SCells for the UE 164.

In the example of FIG. 1 , any of the illustrated UEs (shown in FIG. 1as a single UE 104 for simplicity) may receive signals 124 from one ormore Earth orbiting space vehicles (SVs) 112 (e.g., satellites). In anaspect, the SVs 112 may be part of a satellite positioning system that aUE 104 can use as an independent source of location information. Asatellite positioning system typically includes a system of transmitters(e.g., SVs 112) positioned to enable receivers (e.g., UEs 104) todetermine their location on or above the Earth based, at least in part,on positioning signals (e.g., signals 124) received from thetransmitters. Such a transmitter typically transmits a signal markedwith a repeating pseudo-random noise (PN) code of a set number of chips.While typically located in SVs 112, transmitters may sometimes belocated on ground-based control stations, base stations 102, and/orother UEs 104. A UE 104 may include one or more dedicated receiversspecifically designed to receive signals 124 for deriving geo locationinformation from the SVs 112.

In a satellite positioning system, the use of signals 124 can beaugmented by various satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS) thatmay be associated with or otherwise enabled for use with one or moreglobal and/or regional navigation satellite systems. For example an SBASmay include an augmentation system(s) that provides integrityinformation, differential corrections, etc., such as the Wide AreaAugmentation System (WAAS), the European Geostationary NavigationOverlay Service (EGNOS), the Multi-functional Satellite AugmentationSystem (MSAS), the Global Positioning System (GPS) Aided Geo AugmentedNavigation or GPS and Geo Augmented Navigation system (GAGAN), and/orthe like. Thus, as used herein, a satellite positioning system mayinclude any combination of one or more global and/or regional navigationsatellites associated with such one or more satellite positioningsystems.

In an aspect, SVs 112 may additionally or alternatively be part of oneor more non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). In an NTN, an SV 112 isconnected to an earth station (also referred to as a ground station, NTNgateway, or gateway), which in turn is connected to an element in a 5Gnetwork, such as a modified base station 102 (without a terrestrialantenna) or a network node in a 5GC. This element would in turn provideaccess to other elements in the 5G network and ultimately to entitiesexternal to the 5G network, such as Internet web servers and other userdevices. In that way, a UE 104 may receive communication signals (e.g.,signals 124) from an SV 112 instead of, or in addition to, communicationsignals from a terrestrial base station 102.

The wireless communications system 100 may further include one or moreUEs, such as UE 190, that connects indirectly to one or morecommunication networks via one or more device-to-device (D2D)peer-to-peer (P2P) links (referred to as “sidelinks”). In the example ofFIG. 1 , UE 190 has a D2D P2P link 192 with one of the UEs 104 connectedto one of the base stations 102 (e.g., through which UE 190 mayindirectly obtain cellular connectivity) and a D2D P2P link 194 withWLAN STA 152 connected to the WLAN AP 150 (through which UE 190 mayindirectly obtain WLAN-based Internet connectivity). In an example, theD2D P2P links 192 and 194 may be supported with any well-known D2D RAT,such as LTE Direct (LTE-D), WiFi Direct (WiFi-D), Bluetooth®, and so on.

FIG. 2A illustrates an example wireless network structure 200. Forexample, a 5GC 210 (also referred to as a Next Generation Core (NGC))can be viewed functionally as control plane (C-plane) functions 214(e.g., UE registration, authentication, network access, gatewayselection, etc.) and user plane (U-plane) functions 212, (e.g., UEgateway function, access to data networks, IP routing, etc.) whichoperate cooperatively to form the core network. User plane interface(NG-U) 213 and control plane interface (NG-C) 215 connect the gNB 222 tothe 5GC 210 and specifically to the user plane functions 212 and controlplane functions 214, respectively. In an additional configuration, anng-eNB 224 may also be connected to the 5GC 210 via NG-C 215 to thecontrol plane functions 214 and NG-U 213 to user plane functions 212.Further, ng-eNB 224 may directly communicate with gNB 222 via a backhaulconnection 223. In some configurations, a Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN)220 may have one or more gNBs 222, while other configurations includeone or more of both ng-eNBs 224 and gNBs 222. Either (or both) gNB 222or ng-eNB 224 may communicate with one or more UEs 204 (e.g., any of theUEs described herein).

Another optional aspect may include a location server 230, which may bein communication with the 5GC 210 to provide location assistance forUE(s) 204. The location server 230 can be implemented as a plurality ofseparate servers (e.g., physically separate servers, different softwaremodules on a single server, different software modules spread acrossmultiple physical servers, etc.), or alternately may each correspond toa single server. The location server 230 can be configured to supportone or more location services for UEs 204 that can connect to thelocation server 230 via the core network, 5GC 210, and/or via theInternet (not illustrated). Further, the location server 230 may beintegrated into a component of the core network, or alternatively may beexternal to the core network (e.g., a third party server, such as anoriginal equipment manufacturer (OEM) server or service server).

FIG. 2B illustrates another example wireless network structure 250. A5GC 260 (which may correspond to 5GC 210 in FIG. 2A) can be viewedfunctionally as control plane functions, provided by an access andmobility management function (AMF) 264, and user plane functions,provided by a user plane function (UPF) 262, which operate cooperativelyto form the core network (i.e., 5GC 260). The functions of the AMF 264include registration management, connection management, reachabilitymanagement, mobility management, lawful interception, transport forsession management (SM) messages between one or more UEs 204 (e.g., anyof the UEs described herein) and a session management function (SMF)266, transparent proxy services for routing SM messages, accessauthentication and access authorization, transport for short messageservice (SMS) messages between the UE 204 and the short message servicefunction (SMSF) (not shown), and security anchor functionality (SEAF).The AMF 264 also interacts with an authentication server function (AUSF)(not shown) and the UE 204, and receives the intermediate key that wasestablished as a result of the UE 204 authentication process. In thecase of authentication based on a UMTS (universal mobiletelecommunications system) subscriber identity module (USIM), the AMF264 retrieves the security material from the AUSF. The functions of theAMF 264 also include security context management (SCM). The SCM receivesa key from the SEAF that it uses to derive access-network specific keys.The functionality of the AMF 264 also includes location servicesmanagement for regulatory services, transport for location servicesmessages between the UE 204 and a location management function (LMF) 270(which acts as a location server 230), transport for location servicesmessages between the NG-RAN 220 and the LMF 270, evolved packet system(EPS) bearer identifier allocation for interworking with the EPS, and UE204 mobility event notification. In addition, the AMF 264 also supportsfunctionalities for non-3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project)access networks.

Functions of the UPF 262 include acting as an anchor point forintra-/inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), acting as an externalprotocol data unit (PDU) session point of interconnect to a data network(not shown), providing packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection,user plane policy rule enforcement (e.g., gating, redirection, trafficsteering), lawful interception (user plane collection), traffic usagereporting, quality of service (QoS) handling for the user plane (e.g.,uplink/downlink rate enforcement, reflective QoS marking in thedownlink), uplink traffic verification (service data flow (SDF) to QoSflow mapping), transport level packet marking in the uplink anddownlink, downlink packet buffering and downlink data notificationtriggering, and sending and forwarding of one or more “end markers” tothe source RAN node. The UPF 262 may also support transfer of locationservices messages over a user plane between the UE 204 and a locationserver, such as an SLP 272.

The functions of the SMF 266 include session management, UE Internetprotocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and controlof user plane functions, configuration of traffic steering at the UPF262 to route traffic to the proper destination, control of part ofpolicy enforcement and QoS, and downlink data notification. Theinterface over which the SMF 266 communicates with the AMF 264 isreferred to as the N11 interface.

Another optional aspect may include an LMF 270, which may be incommunication with the 5GC 260 to provide location assistance for UEs204. The LMF 270 can be implemented as a plurality of separate servers(e.g., physically separate servers, different software modules on asingle server, different software modules spread across multiplephysical servers, etc.), or alternately may each correspond to a singleserver. The LMF 270 can be configured to support one or more locationservices for UEs 204 that can connect to the LMF 270 via the corenetwork, 5GC 260, and/or via the Internet (not illustrated). The SLP 272may support similar functions to the LMF 270, but whereas the LMF 270may communicate with the AMF 264, NG-RAN 220, and UEs 204 over a controlplane (e.g., using interfaces and protocols intended to convey signalingmessages and not voice or data), the SLP 272 may communicate with UEs204 and external clients (not shown in FIG. 2B) over a user plane (e.g.,using protocols intended to carry voice and/or data like thetransmission control protocol (TCP) and/or IP).

User plane interface 263 and control plane interface 265 connect the 5GC260, and specifically the UPF 262 and AMF 264, respectively, to one ormore gNBs 222 and/or ng-eNBs 224 in the NG-RAN 220. The interfacebetween gNB(s) 222 and/or ng-eNB(s) 224 and the AMF 264 is referred toas the “N2” interface, and the interface between gNB(s) 222 and/orng-eNB(s) 224 and the UPF 262 is referred to as the “N3” interface. ThegNB(s) 222 and/or ng-eNB(s) 224 of the NG-RAN 220 may communicatedirectly with each other via backhaul connections 223, referred to asthe “Xn-C” interface. One or more of gNBs 222 and/or ng-eNBs 224 maycommunicate with one or more UEs 204 over a wireless interface, referredto as the “Uu” interface.

The functionality of a gNB 222 is divided between a gNB central unit(gNB-CU) 226 and one or more gNB distributed units (gNB-DUs) 228. Theinterface 232 between the gNB-CU 226 and the one or more gNB-DUs 228 isreferred to as the “F1” interface. A gNB-CU 226 is a logical node thatincludes the base station functions of transferring user data, mobilitycontrol, radio access network sharing, positioning, session management,and the like, except for those functions allocated exclusively to thegNB-DU(s) 228. More specifically, the gNB-CU 226 hosts the radioresource control (RRC), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), andpacket data convergence protocol (PDCP) protocols of the gNB 222. AgNB-DU 228 is a logical node that hosts the radio link control (RLC),medium access control (MAC), and physical (PHY) layers of the gNB 222.Its operation is controlled by the gNB-CU 226. One gNB-DU 228 cansupport one or more cells, and one cell is supported by only one gNB-DU228. Thus, a UE 204 communicates with the gNB-CU 226 via the RRC, SDAP,and PDCP layers and with a gNB-DU 228 via the RLC, MAC, and PHY layers.

FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C illustrate several example components (representedby corresponding blocks) that may be incorporated into a UE 302 (whichmay correspond to any of the UEs described herein), a base station 304(which may correspond to any of the base stations described herein), anda network entity 306 (which may correspond to or embody any of thenetwork functions described herein, including the location server 230and the LMF 270, or alternatively may be independent from the NG-RAN 220and/or 5GC 210/260 infrastructure depicted in FIGS. 2A and 2B, such as aprivate network) to support the file transmission operations as taughtherein. It will be appreciated that these components may be implementedin different types of apparatuses in different implementations (e.g., inan ASIC, in a system-on-chip (SoC), etc.). The illustrated componentsmay also be incorporated into other apparatuses in a communicationsystem. For example, other apparatuses in a system may includecomponents similar to those described to provide similar functionality.Also, a given apparatus may contain one or more of the components. Forexample, an apparatus may include multiple transceiver components thatenable the apparatus to operate on multiple carriers and/or communicatevia different technologies.

The UE 302 and the base station 304 each include one or more wirelesswide area network (WWAN) transceivers 310 and 350, respectively,providing means for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, meansfor receiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means forrefraining from transmitting, etc.) via one or more wirelesscommunication networks (not shown), such as an NR network, an LTEnetwork, a GSM network, and/or the like. The WWAN transceivers 310 and350 may each be connected to one or more antennas 316 and 356,respectively, for communicating with other network nodes, such as otherUEs, access points, base stations (e.g., eNBs, gNBs), etc., via at leastone designated RAT (e.g., NR, LTE, GSM, etc.) over a wirelesscommunication medium of interest (e.g., some set of time/frequencyresources in a particular frequency spectrum). The WWAN transceivers 310and 350 may be variously configured for transmitting and encodingsignals 318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, and soon), respectively, and, conversely, for receiving and decoding signals318 and 358 (e.g., messages, indications, information, pilots, and soon), respectively, in accordance with the designated RAT. Specifically,the WWAN transceivers 310 and 350 include one or more transmitters 314and 354, respectively, for transmitting and encoding signals 318 and358, respectively, and one or more receivers 312 and 352, respectively,for receiving and decoding signals 318 and 358, respectively.

The UE 302 and the base station 304 each also include, at least in somecases, one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360,respectively. The short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360 may beconnected to one or more antennas 326 and 366, respectively, and providemeans for communicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means forreceiving, means for measuring, means for tuning, means for refrainingfrom transmitting, etc.) with other network nodes, such as other UEs,access points, base stations, etc., via at least one designated RAT(e.g., WiFi, LTE-D, Bluetooth®, Zigbee®, Z-Wave®, PCS, dedicatedshort-range communications (DSRC), wireless access for vehicularenvironments (WAVE), near-field communication (NFC), etc.) over awireless communication medium of interest. The short-range wirelesstransceivers 320 and 360 may be variously configured for transmittingand encoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications,information, and so on), respectively, and, conversely, for receivingand decoding signals 328 and 368 (e.g., messages, indications,information, pilots, and so on), respectively, in accordance with thedesignated RAT. Specifically, the short-range wireless transceivers 320and 360 include one or more transmitters 324 and 364, respectively, fortransmitting and encoding signals 328 and 368, respectively, and one ormore receivers 322 and 362, respectively, for receiving and decodingsignals 328 and 368, respectively. As specific examples, the short-rangewireless transceivers 320 and 360 may be WiFi transceivers, Bluetooth®transceivers, Zigbee® and/or Z-Wave® transceivers, NFC transceivers, orvehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and/or vehicle-to-everything (V2X)transceivers.

The UE 302 and the base station 304 also include, at least in somecases, satellite signal receivers 330 and 370. The satellite signalreceivers 330 and 370 may be connected to one or more antennas 336 and376, respectively, and may provide means for receiving and/or measuringsatellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378, respectively.Where the satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 are satellitepositioning system receivers, the satellite positioning/communicationsignals 338 and 378 may be global positioning system (GPS) signals,global navigation satellite system (GLONASS) signals, Galileo signals,Beidou signals, Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NAVIC),Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), etc. Where the satellite signalreceivers 330 and 370 are non-terrestrial network (NTN) receivers, thesatellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378 may becommunication signals (e.g., carrying control and/or user data)originating from a 5G network. The satellite signal receivers 330 and370 may comprise any suitable hardware and/or software for receiving andprocessing satellite positioning/communication signals 338 and 378,respectively. The satellite signal receivers 330 and 370 may requestinformation and operations as appropriate from the other systems, and,at least in some cases, perform calculations to determine locations ofthe UE 302 and the base station 304, respectively, using measurementsobtained by any suitable satellite positioning system algorithm.

The base station 304 and the network entity 306 each include one or morenetwork transceivers 380 and 390, respectively, providing means forcommunicating (e.g., means for transmitting, means for receiving, etc.)with other network entities (e.g., other base stations 304, othernetwork entities 306). For example, the base station 304 may employ theone or more network transceivers 380 to communicate with other basestations 304 or network entities 306 over one or more wired or wirelessbackhaul links. As another example, the network entity 306 may employthe one or more network transceivers 390 to communicate with one or morebase station 304 over one or more wired or wireless backhaul links, orwith other network entities 306 over one or more wired or wireless corenetwork interfaces.

A transceiver may be configured to communicate over a wired or wirelesslink. A transceiver (whether a wired transceiver or a wirelesstransceiver) includes transmitter circuitry (e.g., transmitters 314,324, 354, 364) and receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352,362). A transceiver may be an integrated device (e.g., embodyingtransmitter circuitry and receiver circuitry in a single device) in someimplementations, may comprise separate transmitter circuitry andseparate receiver circuitry in some implementations, or may be embodiedin other ways in other implementations. The transmitter circuitry andreceiver circuitry of a wired transceiver (e.g., network transceivers380 and 390 in some implementations) may be coupled to one or more wirednetwork interface ports. Wireless transmitter circuitry (e.g.,transmitters 314, 324, 354, 364) may include or be coupled to aplurality of antennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as anantenna array, that permits the respective apparatus (e.g., UE 302, basestation 304) to perform transmit “beamforming,” as described herein.Similarly, wireless receiver circuitry (e.g., receivers 312, 322, 352,362) may include or be coupled to a plurality of antennas (e.g.,antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such as an antenna array, that permits therespective apparatus (e.g., UE 302, base station 304) to perform receivebeamforming, as described herein. In an aspect, the transmittercircuitry and receiver circuitry may share the same plurality ofantennas (e.g., antennas 316, 326, 356, 366), such that the respectiveapparatus can only receive or transmit at a given time, not both at thesame time. A wireless transceiver (e.g., WWAN transceivers 310 and 350,short-range wireless transceivers 320 and 360) may also include anetwork listen module (NLM) or the like for performing variousmeasurements.

As used herein, the various wireless transceivers (e.g., transceivers310, 320, 350, and 360, and network transceivers 380 and 390 in someimplementations) and wired transceivers (e.g., network transceivers 380and 390 in some implementations) may generally be characterized as “atransceiver,” “at least one transceiver,” or “one or more transceivers.”As such, whether a particular transceiver is a wired or wirelesstransceiver may be inferred from the type of communication performed.For example, backhaul communication between network devices or serverswill generally relate to signaling via a wired transceiver, whereaswireless communication between a UE (e.g., UE 302) and a base station(e.g., base station 304) will generally relate to signaling via awireless transceiver.

The UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 alsoinclude other components that may be used in conjunction with theoperations as disclosed herein. The UE 302, the base station 304, andthe network entity 306 include one or more processors 332, 384, and 394,respectively, for providing functionality relating to, for example,wireless communication, and for providing other processingfunctionality. The processors 332, 384, and 394 may therefore providemeans for processing, such as means for determining, means forcalculating, means for receiving, means for transmitting, means forindicating, etc. In an aspect, the processors 332, 384, and 394 mayinclude, for example, one or more general purpose processors, multi-coreprocessors, central processing units (CPUs), ASICs, digital signalprocessors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), otherprogrammable logic devices or processing circuitry, or variouscombinations thereof.

The UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306 includememory circuitry implementing memories 340, 386, and 396 (e.g., eachincluding a memory device), respectively, for maintaining information(e.g., information indicative of reserved resources, thresholds,parameters, and so on). The memories 340, 386, and 396 may thereforeprovide means for storing, means for retrieving, means for maintaining,etc. In some cases, the UE 302, the base station 304, and the networkentity 306 may include positioning component 342, 388, and 398,respectively. The positioning component 342, 388, and 398 may behardware circuits that are part of or coupled to the processors 332,384, and 394, respectively, that, when executed, cause the UE 302, thebase station 304, and the network entity 306 to perform thefunctionality described herein. In other aspects, the positioningcomponent 342, 388, and 398 may be external to the processors 332, 384,and 394 (e.g., part of a modem processing system, integrated withanother processing system, etc.). Alternatively, the positioningcomponent 342, 388, and 398 may be memory modules stored in the memories340, 386, and 396, respectively, that, when executed by the processors332, 384, and 394 (or a modem processing system, another processingsystem, etc.), cause the UE 302, the base station 304, and the networkentity 306 to perform the functionality described herein. FIG. 3Aillustrates possible locations of the positioning component 342, whichmay be, for example, part of the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, thememory 340, the one or more processors 332, or any combination thereof,or may be a standalone component. FIG. 3B illustrates possible locationsof the positioning component 388, which may be, for example, part of theone or more WWAN transceivers 350, the memory 386, the one or moreprocessors 384, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalonecomponent. FIG. 3C illustrates possible locations of the positioningcomponent 398, which may be, for example, part of the one or morenetwork transceivers 390, the memory 396, the one or more processors394, or any combination thereof, or may be a standalone component.

The UE 302 may include one or more sensors 344 coupled to the one ormore processors 332 to provide means for sensing or detecting movementand/or orientation information that is independent of motion dataderived from signals received by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310,the one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, and/or thesatellite signal receiver 330. By way of example, the sensor(s) 344 mayinclude an accelerometer (e.g., a micro-electrical mechanical systems(MEMS) device), a gyroscope, a geomagnetic sensor (e.g., a compass), analtimeter (e.g., a barometric pressure altimeter), and/or any other typeof movement detection sensor. Moreover, the sensor(s) 344 may include aplurality of different types of devices and combine their outputs inorder to provide motion information. For example, the sensor(s) 344 mayuse a combination of a multi-axis accelerometer and orientation sensorsto provide the ability to compute positions in two-dimensional (2D)and/or three-dimensional (3D) coordinate systems.

In addition, the UE 302 includes a user interface 346 providing meansfor providing indications (e.g., audible and/or visual indications) to auser and/or for receiving user input (e.g., upon user actuation of asensing device such a keypad, a touch screen, a microphone, and so on).Although not shown, the base station 304 and the network entity 306 mayalso include user interfaces.

Referring to the one or more processors 384 in more detail, in thedownlink, IP packets from the network entity 306 may be provided to theprocessor 384. The one or more processors 384 may implementfunctionality for an RRC layer, a packet data convergence protocol(PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium accesscontrol (MAC) layer. The one or more processors 384 may provide RRClayer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information(e.g., master information block (MIB), system information blocks(SIBs)), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRCconnection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRCconnection release), inter-RAT mobility, and measurement configurationfor UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated withheader compression/decompression, security (ciphering, deciphering,integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover supportfunctions; RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upperlayer PDUs, error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ),concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units(SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC dataPDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping betweenlogical channels and transport channels, scheduling informationreporting, error correction, priority handling, and logical channelprioritization.

The transmitter 354 and the receiver 352 may implement Layer-1 (L1)functionality associated with various signal processing functions.Layer-1, which includes a physical (PHY) layer, may include errordetection on the transport channels, forward error correction (FEC)coding/decoding of the transport channels, interleaving, rate matching,mapping onto physical channels, modulation/demodulation of physicalchannels, and MIMO antenna processing. The transmitter 354 handlesmapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes(e.g., binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying(QPSK), M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation(M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be split intoparallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an orthogonalfrequency division multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with areference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and/or frequency domain, andthen combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) toproduce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream.The OFDM symbol stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatialstreams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator may be used todetermine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatialprocessing. The channel estimate may be derived from a reference signaland/or channel condition feedback transmitted by the UE 302. Eachspatial stream may then be provided to one or more different antennas356. The transmitter 354 may modulate an RF carrier with a respectivespatial stream for transmission.

At the UE 302, the receiver 312 receives a signal through its respectiveantenna(s) 316. The receiver 312 recovers information modulated onto anRF carrier and provides the information to the one or more processors332. The transmitter 314 and the receiver 312 implement Layer-1functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Thereceiver 312 may perform spatial processing on the information torecover any spatial streams destined for the UE 302. If multiple spatialstreams are destined for the UE 302, they may be combined by thereceiver 312 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The receiver 312 thenconverts the OFDM symbol stream from the time-domain to the frequencydomain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signalcomprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDMsignal. The symbols on each subcarrier, and the reference signal, arerecovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signalconstellation points transmitted by the base station 304. These softdecisions may be based on channel estimates computed by a channelestimator. The soft decisions are then decoded and de-interleaved torecover the data and control signals that were originally transmitted bythe base station 304 on the physical channel. The data and controlsignals are then provided to the one or more processors 332, whichimplements Layer-3 (L3) and Layer-2 (L2) functionality.

In the uplink, the one or more processors 332 provides demultiplexingbetween transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering,header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IPpackets from the core network. The one or more processors 332 are alsoresponsible for error detection.

Similar to the functionality described in connection with the downlinktransmission by the base station 304, the one or more processors 332provides RRC layer functionality associated with system information(e.g., MIB, SIBs) acquisition, RRC connections, and measurementreporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with headercompression/decompression, and security (ciphering, deciphering,integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionalityassociated with the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correctionthrough ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs,re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; andMAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channelsand transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks(TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling informationreporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request(HARD), priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator from a referencesignal or feedback transmitted by the base station 304 may be used bythe transmitter 314 to select the appropriate coding and modulationschemes, and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streamsgenerated by the transmitter 314 may be provided to different antenna(s)316. The transmitter 314 may modulate an RF carrier with a respectivespatial stream for transmission.

The uplink transmission is processed at the base station 304 in a mannersimilar to that described in connection with the receiver function atthe UE 302. The receiver 352 receives a signal through its respectiveantenna(s) 356. The receiver 352 recovers information modulated onto anRF carrier and provides the information to the one or more processors384.

In the uplink, the one or more processors 384 provides demultiplexingbetween transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering,header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packetsfrom the UE 302. IP packets from the one or more processors 384 may beprovided to the core network. The one or more processors 384 are alsoresponsible for error detection.

For convenience, the UE 302, the base station 304, and/or the networkentity 306 are shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C as including variouscomponents that may be configured according to the various examplesdescribed herein. It will be appreciated, however, that the illustratedcomponents may have different functionality in different designs. Inparticular, various components in FIGS. 3A to 3C are optional inalternative configurations and the various aspects includeconfigurations that may vary due to design choice, costs, use of thedevice, or other considerations. For example, in case of FIG. 3A, aparticular implementation of UE 302 may omit the WWAN transceiver(s) 310(e.g., a wearable device or tablet computer or PC or laptop may haveWi-Fi and/or Bluetooth capability without cellular capability), or mayomit the short-range wireless transceiver(s) 320 (e.g., cellular-only,etc.), or may omit the satellite signal receiver 330, or may omit thesensor(s) 344, and so on. In another example, in case of FIG. 3B, aparticular implementation of the base station 304 may omit the WWANtransceiver(s) 350 (e.g., a Wi-Fi “hotspot” access point withoutcellular capability), or may omit the short-range wirelesstransceiver(s) 360 (e.g., cellular-only, etc.), or may omit thesatellite receiver 370, and so on. For brevity, illustration of thevarious alternative configurations is not provided herein, but would bereadily understandable to one skilled in the art.

The various components of the UE 302, the base station 304, and thenetwork entity 306 may be communicatively coupled to each other overdata buses 334, 382, and 392, respectively. In an aspect, the data buses334, 382, and 392 may form, or be part of, a communication interface ofthe UE 302, the base station 304, and the network entity 306,respectively. For example, where different logical entities are embodiedin the same device (e.g., gNB and location server functionalityincorporated into the same base station 304), the data buses 334, 382,and 392 may provide communication between them.

The components of FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C may be implemented in variousways. In some implementations, the components of FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3Cmay be implemented in one or more circuits such as, for example, one ormore processors and/or one or more ASICs (which may include one or moreprocessors). Here, each circuit may use and/or incorporate at least onememory component for storing information or executable code used by thecircuit to provide this functionality. For example, some or all of thefunctionality represented by blocks 310 to 346 may be implemented byprocessor and memory component(s) of the UE 302 (e.g., by execution ofappropriate code and/or by appropriate configuration of processorcomponents). Similarly, some or all of the functionality represented byblocks 350 to 388 may be implemented by processor and memorycomponent(s) of the base station 304 (e.g., by execution of appropriatecode and/or by appropriate configuration of processor components). Also,some or all of the functionality represented by blocks 390 to 398 may beimplemented by processor and memory component(s) of the network entity306 (e.g., by execution of appropriate code and/or by appropriateconfiguration of processor components). For simplicity, variousoperations, acts, and/or functions are described herein as beingperformed “by a UE,” “by a base station,” “by a network entity,” etc.However, as will be appreciated, such operations, acts, and/or functionsmay actually be performed by specific components or combinations ofcomponents of the UE 302, base station 304, network entity 306, etc.,such as the processors 332, 384, 394, the transceivers 310, 320, 350,and 360, the memories 340, 386, and 396, the positioning component 342,388, and 398, etc.

In some designs, the network entity 306 may be implemented as a corenetwork component. In other designs, the network entity 306 may bedistinct from a network operator or operation of the cellular networkinfrastructure (e.g., NG RAN 220 and/or 5GC 210/260). For example, thenetwork entity 306 may be a component of a private network that may beconfigured to communicate with the UE 302 via the base station 304 orindependently from the base station 304 (e.g., over a non-cellularcommunication link, such as WiFi).

NR supports a number of cellular network-based positioning technologies,including downlink-based, uplink-based, and downlink-and-uplink-basedpositioning methods. Downlink-based positioning methods include observedtime difference of arrival (OTDOA) in LTE, downlink time difference ofarrival (DL-TDOA) in NR, and downlink angle-of-departure (DL-AoD) in NR.FIG. 4 illustrates examples of various positioning methods, according toaspects of the disclosure. In an OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure,illustrated by scenario 410, a target UE (i.e., a UE to bepositioned/located) measures the differences between the times ofarrival (ToAs) of reference signals (e.g., positioning reference signals(PRS)) received from pairs of base stations, referred to as referencesignal time difference (RSTD) or time difference of arrival (TDOA)measurements, and reports them to a positioning entity. Morespecifically, the UE receives the identifiers (IDs) of a reference basestation (e.g., a serving base station) and multiple non-reference basestations in assistance data. The UE then measures the RSTD between thereference base station and each of the non-reference base stations.Based on the known locations of the involved base stations and the RSTDmeasurements, the positioning entity can estimate the UE's location.

For DL-AoD positioning, illustrated by scenario 420, the positioningentity uses a beam report from the target UE of received signal strengthmeasurements of multiple downlink transmit beams to determine theangle(s) between the UE and the transmitting base station(s). Thepositioning entity can then estimate the location of the UE based on thedetermined angle(s) and the known location(s) of the transmitting basestation(s).

Uplink-based positioning methods include uplink time difference ofarrival (UL-TDOA) and uplink angle-of-arrival (UL-AoA). UL-TDOA issimilar to DL-TDOA, but is based on uplink reference signals (e.g.,sounding reference signals (SRS)) transmitted by the target UE. ForUL-AoA positioning, one or more base stations measure the receivedsignal strength of one or more uplink reference signals (e.g., SRS)received from a UE on one or more uplink receive beams. The positioningentity uses the signal strength measurements and the angle(s) of thereceive beam(s) to determine the angle(s) between the UE and the basestation(s). Based on the determined angle(s) and the known location(s)of the base station(s), the positioning entity can then estimate thelocation of the UE.

Downlink-and-uplink-based positioning methods include enhanced cell-ID(E-CID) positioning and multi-round-trip-time (RTT) positioning (alsoreferred to as “multi-cell RTT”). In an RTT procedure, an initiator (abase station or a UE) transmits an RTT measurement signal (e.g., a PRSor SRS) to a responder (a UE or base station), which transmits an RTTresponse signal (e.g., an SRS or PRS) back to the initiator. The RTTresponse signal includes the difference between the ToA of the RTTmeasurement signal and the transmission time of the RTT response signal,referred to as the reception-to-transmission (Rx-Tx) time difference.The initiator calculates the difference between the transmission time ofthe RTT measurement signal and the ToA of the RTT response signal,referred to as the transmission-to-reception (Tx-Rx) time difference.The propagation time (also referred to as the “time of flight”) betweenthe initiator and the responder can be calculated from the Tx-Rx andRx-Tx time differences. Based on the propagation time and the knownspeed of light, the distance between the initiator and the responder canbe determined. For multi-RTT positioning, illustrated by scenario 430, atarget UE performs an RTT procedure with multiple base stations toenable its location to be determined (e.g., using multilateration) basedon the known locations of the base stations. RTT and multi-RTT methodscan be combined with other positioning techniques, such as UL-AoA,illustrated by scenario 440, and DL-AoD, to improve location accuracy.

The E-CID positioning method is based on radio resource management (RRM)measurements. In E-CID, the UE reports the serving cell ID, the timingadvance (TA), and the identifiers, estimated timing, and signal strengthof detected neighbor base stations. The location of the target UE isthen estimated based on this information and the known locations of thebase station(s).

To assist positioning operations, a location server (e.g., locationserver 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) may provide assistance data to the targetUE. For example, the assistance data may include identifiers of the basestations (or the cells/TRPs of the base stations) from which to measurereference signals, the reference signal configuration parameters (e.g.,the number of consecutive positioning subframes, periodicity ofpositioning subframes, muting sequence, frequency hopping sequence,reference signal identifier, reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and/orother parameters applicable to the particular positioning method.Alternatively, the assistance data may originate directly from the basestations themselves (e.g., in periodically broadcasted overheadmessages, etc.). In some cases, the UE may be able to detect neighbornetwork nodes itself without the use of assistance data.

In the case of an OTDOA or DL-TDOA positioning procedure, the assistancedata may further include an expected RSTD value and an associateduncertainty, or search window, around the expected RSTD. In some cases,the value range of the expected RSTD may be +/−500 microseconds (μs). Insome cases, when any of the resources used for the positioningmeasurement are in FR1, the value range for the uncertainty of theexpected RSTD may be +/−32 μs. In other cases, when all of the resourcesused for the positioning measurement(s) are in FR2, the value range forthe uncertainty of the expected RSTD may be +/−8 μs.

A location estimate may be referred to by other names, such as aposition estimate, location, position, position fix, fix, or the like. Alocation estimate may be geodetic and comprise coordinates (e.g.,latitude, longitude, and possibly altitude) or may be civic and comprisea street address, postal address, or some other verbal description of alocation. A location estimate may further be defined relative to someother known location or defined in absolute terms (e.g., using latitude,longitude, and possibly altitude). A location estimate may include anexpected error or uncertainty (e.g., by including an area or volumewithin which the location is expected to be included with some specifiedor default level of confidence).

When an electromagnetic wave hits a surface, which is much larger thanthe wavelength, part of the energy of the wave is reflected, part of itis absorbed by the surface, and the remainder is refracted through thesurface. FIG. 5 is a graph 500 representing the channel impulse responseof a multipath channel between a receiver device (e.g., any of the UEsor base stations described herein) and a transmitter device (e.g., anyother of the UEs or base stations described herein), according toaspects of the disclosure. The channel impulse response represents theintensity of a radio frequency (RF) signal (i.e., an electromagneticwave) received through a multipath channel as a function of time delay.Thus, the horizontal axis is in units of time (e.g., milliseconds) andthe vertical axis is in units of signal strength (e.g., decibels). Notethat a multipath channel is a channel between a transmitter and areceiver over which an RF signal follows multiple paths, or multipaths,due to transmission of the RF signal on multiple beams and/or to thepropagation characteristics of the RF signal (e.g., reflection,refraction, etc.).

In the example of FIG. 5 , the receiver detects/measures multiple (four)clusters of channel taps. Each channel tap represents a multipath thatan RF signal followed between the transmitter and the receiver. That is,a channel tap represents the arrival of an RF signal on a multipath.Each cluster of channel taps indicates that the corresponding multipathsfollowed essentially the same path. There may be different clusters dueto the RF signal being transmitted on different transmit beams (andtherefore at different angles), or because of the propagationcharacteristics of RF signals (e.g., potentially following differentpaths due to reflections), or both.

All of the clusters of channel taps for a given RF signal represent themultipath channel (or simply channel) between the transmitter andreceiver. Under the channel illustrated in FIG. 5 , the receiverreceives a first cluster of two RF signals on channel taps at time T1, asecond cluster of five RF signals on channel taps at time T2, a thirdcluster of five RF signals on channel taps at time T3, and a fourthcluster of four RF signals on channel taps at time T4. In the example ofFIG. 5 , because the first cluster of RF signals at time T1 arrivesfirst, it is assumed to correspond to the RF signal transmitted on thetransmit beam aligned with the line-of-sight (LOS), or the shortest,multipath (or path). The third cluster at time T3 is comprised of thestrongest RF signals, and may correspond to, for example, the RF signaltransmitted on a transmit beam aligned with a non-line-of-sight (NLOS)path. Note that although FIG. 5 illustrates clusters of two to fivechannel taps, as will be appreciated, the clusters may have more orfewer than the illustrated number of channel taps.

A TRP (or UE or other device) that participates in a positioningprocedure with a target UE and has a known location (at least to thepositioning entity) is referred to as an “anchor” (or “anchor point” or“anchor node” or the like). A “virtual anchor” (VA) is a virtual TRPthat appears to be located at a location that, with respect to areflecting surface, is a mirror image of the location of the real, orphysical, TRP/anchor. More specifically, according to the two-raychannel model (i.e., a channel having at least an LOS path and an NLOSpath, as described with reference to FIG. 5 ), the NLOS multipath thatresults from reflection off a surface can be related to a virtual TRPlocated in a mirror position of the real TRP with respect to thereflecting surface.

FIG. 6 is a diagram 600 illustrating the relationship between a virtualanchor and the real anchor, according to aspects of the disclosure. Asshown in FIG. 6 , a physical TRP 602 (e.g., a TRP of any of the basestations described herein) is transmitting an electromagnetic wave (anRF signal) towards a UE 604 (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). TheTRP 602 is a distance “d1” from a reflecting surface (labeled“Reflector”). The RF signal transmitted by the TRP 602 follows an LOSpath and an NLOS path to the UE 604. Thus, the RF signal has both an LOScomponent and an NLOS component when received at the UE 604. As shown inFIG. 6 , the NLOS path appears to the UE 604 to be an LOS path from avirtual anchor (VA) 606 located a distance “d2” (equal to d1) on theother side of the reflecting surface perpendicular to the physical TRP602. The virtual anchor 606 therefore plays the role of a node thatgenerates the NLOS multipath component that the UE 604 observes. Thetime of flight (ToF) of the NLOS path equals the ToF of the RF signalfrom the virtual anchor 606 to the UE 604.

FIG. 7 is a diagram 700 illustrating the consistency of a virtual anchorlocation with respect to a reflecting surface with UE mobility andmultiple UEs, according to aspects of the disclosure. As shown in FIG. 7, a TRP 702 (e.g., a TRP of any of the base stations described herein)is transmitting RF signals to three UEs, labeled “UE1,” “UE2,” and “UE3”(e.g., any of the UEs described herein). The RF signals follow LOS paths(represented by solid lines) to each of the UEs. The RF signals alsoreflect off a reflecting surface (labeled “Reflector”), therebyfollowing NLOS paths (represented by dashed lines) to the UEs andappearing to be generated by a virtual anchor (VA) 706. As shown in FIG.7 , for each of the UEs, even though at a different location relative tothe TRP 702, the virtual anchor 706 appears to be in the same locationrelative to the TRP 702. In addition, even though UE3 is moving, thevirtual anchor 706 does not move and instead appears to be in the samelocation relative to the TRP 702.

FIG. 8 is a diagram 800 illustrating a multiple reflector scenario witha virtual anchor, according to aspects of the disclosure. As shown inFIG. 8 , a TRP 802 (e.g., a TRP of any of the base stations describedherein) is transmitting RF signals to a moving UE (e.g., any of the UEsdescribed herein). The RF signals reflect off a first reflecting surface(labeled “Reflector1”) and a second reflecting surface (labeled“Reflector2”), thereby following NLOS paths (represented by dashedlines) to the UE and appearing to be generated by a virtual anchor (VA)806. As shown in FIG. 8 , the location of the virtual anchor 806 for atwo-reflection path scenario is the mirror image of the location of theTRP 802 for the first reflecting surface (represented by point 808) andthen, for the second reflecting surface, the mirror image of thelocation of the mirror image of the TRP 802 with respect to the firstreflecting surface (i.e., the mirror image of point 808).

FIG. 9 is a diagram 900 illustrating the effect of scattering entitieswith respect to a reflecting surface, according to aspects of thedisclosure. As shown in FIG. 9 , a TRP 902 (e.g., a TRP of any of thebase stations described herein) is transmitting RF signals to a movingUE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). The RF signals reflect off areflecting surface (labeled “Reflector”) and two scattering entities(labeled “S1” and “S2”), thereby following NLOS paths (represented bydashed lines) to the UE. As shown in FIG. 9 , because of the scatteringcaused by the scattering entities, the virtual anchor property is notpreserved. The scattering entities act as new point sources of theenergy of the RF signals, and the multipath propagation characteristicsbefore reaching the scattering entities cannot be easily reconstructed.

As shown above, reflected multipath components can be readily used toimprove positioning by tracking the virtual anchor locations, asillustrated in FIGS. 6 to 8 . In contrast, scattered paths are muchharder to utilize for positioning, as illustrated in FIG. 9 .

Traditional positioning methods rely on at least three LOS measurementsfrom TRPs to estimate the location of a UE (e.g., viatrilateration/triangulation). In many environments, it is possible forTRPs to be blocked from the LOS view of a UE, resulting in aninsufficient number of LOS measurements. In such cases, traditionalpositioning methods can fail.

A UE may determine the location of a virtual anchor by extractingmultipath components of the RF signal(s) received from a TRP andtracking the virtual anchor location over time (assuming UE mobility).Depending on the UE's capability of measuring the angle of arrival (AoA)of an RF signal (or more specifically, the multipath components of an RFsignal), the location of a virtual anchor can be estimated based on (1)AoA and ToF or (2) ToF-only. Once the location of the virtual anchor isdetermined, it can be used as an anchor for a positioning procedure(e.g., RTT, DL-TDOA, etc.).

Regarding the AoA and ToF technique, the location of a virtual anchorcan be derived based on one type of measurement of the RF signal(s)received from a TRP, specifically, the AoA measurement of the NLOScomponent(s) of the RF signal(s). The ToF may be determined from theknown transmission time(s) of the RF signal(s) (from the TRP) and thetime(s) of arrival (ToA(s)), or reception time(s), at the UE. The TRPmay report the transmission time(s) of the RF signal(s) to thepositioning entity, which may be the UE for UE-based positioning or alocation server (e.g., LMF 270) for UE-assisted positioning. ForUE-assisted positioning, the UE reports the ToA(s) and AoA(s) of theNLOS component(s) of the RF signal(s) to the location server. Thelocation of the virtual anchor is then calculated at a point that is thedistance from the UE indicated by the ToF and at an angle from the UEindicated by the AoA (i.e., in the direction of the AoA).

Regarding the ToF-only technique, the location of the virtual anchor canbe derived by intersecting consecutive circles around the UE as itmoves, each circle having a radius of the range to the virtual anchordetermined based on the ToF of the NLOS paths. FIG. 10 is a diagram 1000illustrating the ToF-only technique, according to aspects of thedisclosure. As shown in FIG. 10 , a UE (e.g., any of the UEs describedherein) is in a motion state (e.g., walking, driving, biking, etc.). Atdifferent locations, the UE measures the ToA of the NLOS component of anRF signal from a TRP (not shown). Based on the transmission times of theRF signals and the measured ToAs, the positioning entity (either the UEor location server) can calculate the ToFs of the NLOS components of theRF signals. Based on the ToFs, the positioning entity can determine adistance, or range, to the virtual anchor (VA) 1006 at each measurementlocation (the distance is the ToF multiplied by the speed of light). Inthe example of FIG. 10 , there are three measurement locations and threecalculated distances, labeled “d1,” “d2,” and “d3.” The location of thevirtual anchor 1006 is estimated as the intersection of three circlesaround the three measurement locations, with each circle having a radiusof the distance to the virtual anchor 1006 determined at that location.

Although the moving UEs in FIGS. 7 to 10 are shown as performingmeasurements at three different locations, as will be appreciated, a UEmay perform measurements at more than three locations while in a motionstate.

A UE may extract/determine multiple NLOS multipath components (e.g., asshown in FIG. 5 ) at each measurement location (e.g., three in theexamples of FIGS. 7 to 10 ). However, not all NLOS components maycorrespond to virtual anchors. In order to ignore virtual anchors thatare the result of diffracted or multiple reflection multipaths, thepositioning entity can perform a consistency test to determine theconsistency of a virtual anchor location. To perform a consistency test,the UE should be moving so that the ToFs are determined at differentlocations (and thereby during different measurement occasions). The TRPshould transmit the RF signals on the same time and frequency resourcesin each measurement occasion so that the measurements by the UE arecomparable. The positioning entity calculates the location of thevirtual anchor using the ToFs, as described above with reference to FIG.10 . After a threshold number of virtual anchor location determinations,locations that are not consistent with the remaining locations (referredto as “outliers”) can be removed, leaving only consistent locations.After a threshold number of consistent locations have been determined,the location of the virtual anchor is considered valid. The remainingconsistent (or “inlier”) locations can be combined into a singlelocation, such as the average or median of the remaining locations.

For UE-assisted positioning procedures, as noted above, the UE reportsthe measured multipath delays (ToAs) and, optionally, the correspondingangles to the location server (which may be located in the core networkor the RAN). More specifically, the UE reports multiple prominent peaksthat may considered reflected, diffracted, or scattered paths.

Currently, a UE can report measurements of two additional paths (inaddition to the measurement reported as the actual positioningmeasurement) when reporting measurements for positioning purposes. Themeasurements may be the reception times of the paths, RSTD (or relativetime difference) measurements based on the paths, Rx-Tx time differencemeasurements based on the paths, etc. These additional path fields canbe used to report measurements based on either (1) additional hypothesisfor LOS delay or (2) actual multipath (second multipath or later)components that can be used to derive virtual TRP locations. Regardingthe first option, the actual positioning measurement being reported(e.g., RSTD, Rx-Tx difference, ToA, etc.) would be based on the UE'sprimary hypothesis for the LOS delay (i.e., the UE's best estimate ofwhich multipath is the LOS path and the reception time of that path),but the UE may report additional hypothesis for the LOS delay if the UEis not certain of the LOS delay of the reported measurement (e.g., dueto a weak path).

The present disclosure proposes to allow the UE to indicate additionalinformation (parameters) about each additional path it reports, ratherthan just the positioning measurement (e.g., reception time, RSTD, Rx-Txtime difference) based on that path. For example, a UE may tag anadditional path field as belonging to an additional hypothesis of theLOS delay, or as a multipath, or both. The UE may also report aparameter indicating the strength of the path (e.g., SINR, RSRP). The UEmay also report a parameter indicating whether the UE believes the pathis a reflected path, a scattered path, a diffracted path, etc. How theUE estimates the path is a reflected path, a scattered path, adiffracted path, etc. is up to implementation, and may be based onprevious observations.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example information element 1100 for reportingmeasurements, according to aspects of the disclosure. In the example ofFIG. 11 , the information element 1100 is named“NR-DL-TDOA-MeasElement-r16” and the reported measurements are RSTDmeasurements for a TDOA positioning procedure. However, as will beappreciated, the disclosure is not limited to TDOA positioningprocedures. As shown in FIG. 11 , the information element 1100 includesan additional path list field that can be used to report additionalpaths for a particular measurement (here, RSTD measurements). In theexample of FIG. 11 , the additional path list field is named“nr-AdditionalPathList-r16” and points to a “NR-AdditionalPathList-r16”information element.

FIG. 12 illustrates an example additional path list information element1200, according to aspects of the disclosure. In the example of FIG. 12, the information element 1200 is named “NR-AdditionalPathList-r16” andmay be the “NR-AdditionalPathList-r16” information element pointed to bythe “nr-AdditionalPathList-r16” field in the information element 1100.The additional path list information element 1200 may include one or twoadditional path information elements, named “NR-AdditionalPath-r16.” Fora TDOA-based positioning procedure, the additional path fields may befor relative time difference measurements (i.e., RSTD measurements), andmay be reported in an “nr-RelativeTimeDifference-r16” field.Alternatively, the additional path fields may be for the reception timesof the additional paths, rather than relative time differencemeasurements based on the additional paths. Such a reception time fieldmay be named “nr-ReceptionTime-r16” and may, like an“nr-RelativeTimeDifference-r16” field, be reported with a resolutionchosen from “k0” to “k5.”

In addition to the relative time difference measurement field or thereception time field, an additional path information element(“NR-AdditionalPath-r16”) may include a field (not shown) indicatingthat the measured path is one of multiple hypothesis of the LOS delay,or a multipath, or both. The additional path information element mayalso include a field (not shown) indicating the strength of the path.The additional path information element may also include a field (notshown) indicating whether the UE believes the path is a reflected path,a scattered path, a diffracted path, etc.

For UE-based and UE-assisted positioning procedures, consider a scenarioin which a UE identifies a virtual anchor having a consistent locationacross multiple multipath component measurements. In an aspect, the UEcan report an estimated location and uncertainty of the virtual anchorto the location server (the positioning entity for UE-assistedpositioning). The positioning entity (the UE or location server) willnow have one extra equation for estimating the location of the UE (byusing the virtual anchor as an anchor point). The positioning entity cankeep this information in a database, along with similar information fromother UEs (referred to as “crowdsourcing”), and use it to improvepositioning accuracy for future positioning procedures with other UEs.For example, referring to FIG. 7 , if the location of the virtual anchor706 is determined based on a positioning procedure with UE3, thatlocation can be used as an anchor for positioning procedures with UE1and UE2. That is, the positioning entity can use the location of thevirtual anchor 706 and the ToFs of the NLOS paths between the physicalTRP and UE1 and UE2 in the position calculations for those UEs.

In an aspect, for UE-based positioning procedures, the estimatedlocation of a virtual anchor can be signaled to the UE in assistancedata. The assistance data may also include an uncertainty of theestimated location of the virtual anchor. The UE can then determinewhether it will use this additional information for improving UE-basedpositioning accuracy. That is, the UE can determine whether it will usethe virtual anchor as an anchor for the positioning procedure.

FIG. 13 illustrates an assistance data information element 1300 thatincludes the estimated location of a virtual anchor and an associateduncertainty, according to aspects of the disclosure. In the example ofFIG. 13 , the estimated location of the virtual anchor is provided in a“virtual-trp-location” field that points to a “RelativeLocation-r16”information element. The “RelativeLocation-r16” information elementwould include the coordinates of the virtual anchor. The associateduncertainty is provided in a “virtual-trp-uncertainty” field that pointsto a “LocationUncertaintyReport” information element.

The various information elements illustrated in FIGS. 11 to 13 may beLTE positioning protocol (LPP) information elements exchanged between aUE and a location server (e.g., LMF 270) or RRC information elementsexchanged between a UE and a base station (where the positioning entityis located at the UE's serving base station).

FIG. 14 illustrates an example method 1400 of positioning, according toaspects of the disclosure. In an aspect, method 1400 may be performed bya positioning entity (e.g., a location server, a serving base station,any of the UE's described herein, etc.).

At 1410, the positioning entity determines a first ToF of a first NLOSmultipath component of a first RF signal transmitted by a physical TRP(e.g., a TRP of any of the base stations described herein) to at least afirst UE (e.g., any of the UEs described herein). In an aspect, wherethe positioning entity is a UE, operation 1410 may be performed by theone or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332,memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may beconsidered means for performing this operation. In an aspect, where thepositioning entity is a base station, operation 1410 may be performed bythe one or more WWAN transceivers 350, the one or more networktransceivers 380, the one or more processors 384, memory 386, orpositioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered meansfor performing this operation. In an aspect, where the positioningentity is a location server, operation 1410 may be performed by the oneor more network transceivers 390, the one or more processors 394, memory396, or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be consideredmeans for performing this operation.

At 1420, the positioning entity determines a location of a virtual TRP(e.g., virtual anchor 706, 806, 1006) associated with the physical TRPbased at least on the first ToF. In an aspect, where the positioningentity is a UE, operation 1420 may be performed by the one or more WWANtransceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/orpositioning component 342, any or all of which may be considered meansfor performing this operation. In an aspect, where the positioningentity is a base station, operation 1420 may be performed by the one ormore WWAN transceivers 350, the one or more network transceivers 380,the one or more processors 384, memory 386, or positioning component388, any or all of which may be considered means for performing thisoperation. In an aspect, where the positioning entity is a locationserver, operation 1420 may be performed by the one or more networktransceivers 390, the one or more processors 394, memory 396, orpositioning component 398, any or all of which may be considered meansfor performing this operation.

At 1430, the positioning entity determines a location of at least asecond UE (e.g., the first UE or a different UE) based, at least inpart, on the location of the virtual TRP. In an aspect, where thepositioning entity is a UE, operation 1430 may be performed by the oneor more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may beconsidered means for performing this operation. In an aspect, where thepositioning entity is a base station, operation 1430 may be performed bythe one or more WWAN transceivers 350, the one or more networktransceivers 380, the one or more processors 384, memory 386, orpositioning component 388, any or all of which may be considered meansfor performing this operation. In an aspect, where the positioningentity is a location server, operation 1430 may be performed by the oneor more network transceivers 390, the one or more processors 394, memory396, or positioning component 398, any or all of which may be consideredmeans for performing this operation.

FIG. 15 illustrates an example method 1500 of wireless positioning,according to aspects of the disclosure. In an aspect, method 1500 may beperformed by a UE (e.g., any of the UE's described herein).

At 1510, the UE determines a positioning measurement of a firstmultipath component of an RF signal transmitted by a TRP (e.g., a TRP ofany of the base stations described herein). In an aspect, operation 1510may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one ormore processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, anyor all of which may be considered means for performing this operation.

At 1520, the UE determines a first additional positioning measurement ofa second multipath component of the RF signal. In an aspect, operation1520 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the oneor more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342,any or all of which may be considered means for performing thisoperation.

At 1530, the UE determines a second additional positioning measurementof a third multipath component of the RF signal. In an aspect, operation1530 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the oneor more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342,any or all of which may be considered means for performing thisoperation.

At 1540, the UE transmits a measurement report to a location server, themeasurement report including at least the positioning measurement, thefirst additional positioning measurement, the second additionalpositioning measurement, and one or more parameters associated with thefirst additional positioning measurement and the second additionalpositioning measurement. In an aspect, operation 1540 may be performedby the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of whichmay be considered means for performing this operation.

FIG. 16 illustrates an example method 1600 of wireless positioning,according to aspects of the disclosure. In an aspect, method 1600 may beperformed by a UE (e.g., any of the UE's described herein, etc.).

At 1610, the UE determines an estimated location of a virtual TRPassociated with a physical TRP (e.g., a TRP of any of the base stationsdescribed herein) based, at least in part, on one or more ToFs of one ormore NLOS multipath components of one or more RF signals transmitted bythe physical TRP. In an aspect, operation 1610 may be performed by theone or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332,memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may beconsidered means for performing this operation.

At 1620, the UE transmits, to a positioning entity (e.g., a locationserver or the serving base station), the estimated location of thevirtual TRP. In an aspect, operation 1620 may be performed by the one ormore WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332, memory 340,and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may be consideredmeans for performing this operation.

FIG. 17 illustrates an example method 1700 of wireless positioning,according to aspects of the disclosure. In an aspect, method 1700 may beperformed by a UE (e.g., any of the UE's described herein, etc.).

At 1710, the UE receives assistance data for a positioning session froma positioning entity (e.g., a location server or the UE's serving basestation), the assistance data including a location of at least onephysical TRP (e.g., a TRP of any of the base stations described herein)and a location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at leastone physical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears totransmit one or more NLOS multipath components of one or more RF signalstransmitted by the at least one physical TRP. In an aspect, operation1710 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the oneor more processors 332, memory 340, and/or positioning component 342,any or all of which may be considered means for performing thisoperation.

At 1720, the UE estimates a location of the UE based, at least in part,on the location of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP,measurements of one or more LOS multipath components of the one or moreRF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one ormore RF signals. In an aspect, operation 1720 may be performed by theone or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more processors 332,memory 340, and/or positioning component 342, any or all of which may beconsidered means for performing this operation.

As will be appreciated, a technical advantage of the methods 1400 to1700 is the ability to use virtual TRPs as additional anchor points forpositioning.

In the detailed description above it can be seen that different featuresare grouped together in examples. This manner of disclosure should notbe understood as an intention that the example clauses have morefeatures than are explicitly mentioned in each clause. Rather, thevarious aspects of the disclosure may include fewer than all features ofan individual example clause disclosed. Therefore, the following clausesshould hereby be deemed to be incorporated in the description, whereineach clause by itself can stand as a separate example. Although eachdependent clause can refer in the clauses to a specific combination withone of the other clauses, the aspect(s) of that dependent clause are notlimited to the specific combination. It will be appreciated that otherexample clauses can also include a combination of the dependent clauseaspect(s) with the subject matter of any other dependent clause orindependent clause or a combination of any feature with other dependentand independent clauses. The various aspects disclosed herein expresslyinclude these combinations, unless it is explicitly expressed or can bereadily inferred that a specific combination is not intended (e.g.,contradictory aspects, such as defining an element as both an insulatorand a conductor). Furthermore, it is also intended that aspects of aclause can be included in any other independent clause, even if theclause is not directly dependent on the independent clause.

Implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

Clause 1. A method of wireless positioning performed by a user equipment(UE), comprising: determining a positioning measurement of a firstmultipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by atransmission-reception point (TRP); determining a first additionalpositioning measurement of a second multipath component of the RFsignal; determining a second additional positioning measurement of athird multipath component of the RF signal; and transmitting ameasurement report to a location server, the measurement reportincluding at least the positioning measurement, the first additionalpositioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement,and one or more parameters associated with the first additionalpositioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement.

Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein the one or more parametersinclude: a line-of-sight (LOS) parameter indicating whether the firstadditional positioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement are based on additional hypothesis of a reception time of anLOS path between the TRP and the UE, a first LOS parameter indicatingwhether the first additional positioning measurement is based on a firsthypothesis of the reception time of the LOS path between the TRP and theUE, a second LOS parameter indicating whether the second additionalpositioning measurement is based on a second hypothesis of the receptiontime of the LOS path between the TRP and the UE, or the first LOSparameter and the second LOS parameter.

Clause 3. The method of any of clauses 1 to 2, wherein the one or moreparameters include: a non-line-of-sight (NLOS) parameter indicatingwhether the first additional positioning measurement and the secondadditional positioning measurement are based on NLOS paths between theTRP and the UE, a first NLOS parameter indicating whether the firstadditional positioning measurement is based on a first NLOS path betweenthe TRP and the UE, a second NLOS parameter indicating whether thesecond additional positioning measurement is based on a second NLOS pathbetween the TRP and the UE, or the first NLOS parameter and the secondNLOS parameter.

Clause 4. The method of any of clauses 1 to 3, wherein the one or moreparameters include: a signal strength of the second multipath component,a signal strength of the third multipath component, or the signalstrength of the second multipath component and the signal strength ofthe third multipath component.

Clause 5. The method of any of clauses 1 to 4, wherein the one or moreparameters include: a path type parameter indicating whether the secondmultipath component and the third multipath component are believed to bereflected paths, scattered paths, or diffracted paths, a first path typeparameter indicating whether the second multipath component is believedto be a first reflected path, a first scattered path, or a firstdiffracted path, a second path type parameter indicating whether thethird multipath component is believed to be a second reflected path, asecond scattered path, or a second diffracted path, or the first pathtype parameter and the second path type parameter.

Clause 6. The method of any of clauses 1 to 5, wherein the positioningmeasurement is a reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurement orreception-to-transmission (Rx-Tx) time difference measurement.

Clause 7. The method of clause 6, wherein the first additionalpositioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement are time of arrival (ToA) measurements, RSTD measurements,Rx-Tx time difference measurements, angle-of-arrival (AoA) measurements,or any combination thereof.

Clause 8. The method of any of clauses 1 to 7, wherein the measurementreport is a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP)measurement report.

Clause 9. The method of clause 8, wherein the first additionalpositioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement are included in an additional path list information element(IE) in the LPP measurement report.

Clause 10. A method of wireless positioning performed by a userequipment (UE), comprising: determining an estimated location of avirtual transmission-reception point (TRP) associated with a physicalTRP based, at least in part, on one or more times of flight (ToFs) ofone or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or moreradio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physical TRP; andtransmitting, to a positioning entity, the estimated location of thevirtual TRP.

Clause 11. The method of clause 10, further comprising: determining anuncertainty associated with the estimated location of the virtual TRP;and transmitting the uncertainty to the positioning entity with theestimated location.

Clause 12. The method of any of clauses 10 to 11, wherein the estimatedlocation is transmitted in a location information message for apositioning session with the positioning entity.

Clause 13. The method of clause 12, wherein: the positioning entity is abase station, and the location information message is a radio resourcecontrol (RRC) message.

Clause 14. The method of clause 12, wherein: the positioning entity is alocation server, and the location information message is a Long-TermEvolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) message.

Clause 15. A method of wireless positioning performed by a userequipment (UE), comprising: receiving assistance data for a positioningsession from a positioning entity, the assistance data including alocation of at least one physical transmission-reception point (TRP) anda location of at least one virtual TRP associated with the at least onephysical TRP, wherein the at least one virtual TRP appears to transmitone or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or moreradio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physicalTRP; and estimating a location of the UE based, at least in part, on thelocation of the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP,measurements of one or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components ofthe one or more RF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipathcomponents of the one or more RF signals.

Clause 16. The method of clause 15, wherein: the assistance data furtherincludes an uncertainty associated with the location of the virtual TRP;and the location of the UE is estimated further based on the uncertaintyassociated with the location of the virtual TRP.

Clause 17. The method of any of clauses 15 to 16, wherein: thepositioning entity is a base station, and the assistance data comprisesone or more radio resource control (RRC) message.

Clause 18. The method of any of clauses 15 to 16, wherein: thepositioning entity is a location server, and the assistance datacomprises one or more Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol(LPP) messages.

Clause 19. An apparatus comprising a memory, at least one transceiver,and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and theat least one transceiver, the memory, the at least one transceiver, andthe at least one processor configured to perform a method according toany of clauses 1 to 18.

Clause 20. An apparatus comprising means for performing a methodaccording to any of clauses 1 to 18.

Clause 21. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storingcomputer-executable instructions, the computer-executable comprising atleast one instruction for causing a computer or processor to perform amethod according to any of clauses 1 to 18.

Those of skill in the art will appreciate that information and signalsmay be represented using any of a variety of different technologies andtechniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information,signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced throughout theabove description may be represented by voltages, currents,electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields orparticles, or any combination thereof.

Further, those of skill in the art will appreciate that the variousillustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm stepsdescribed in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may beimplemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinationsof both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware andsoftware, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits,and steps have been described above generally in terms of theirfunctionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware orsoftware depends upon the particular application and design constraintsimposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement thedescribed functionality in varying ways for each particular application,but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing adeparture from the scope of the present disclosure.

The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits describedin connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be implemented orperformed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor(DSP), an ASIC, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or otherprogrammable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discretehardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform thefunctions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be amicroprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be anyconventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. Aprocessor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices,for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality ofmicroprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSPcore, or any other such configuration.

The methods, sequences and/or algorithms described in connection withthe aspects disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in asoftware module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two.A software module may reside in random access memory (RAM), flashmemory, read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM),electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), registers, hard disk, aremovable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known inthe art. An example storage medium is coupled to the processor such thatthe processor can read information from, and write information to, thestorage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integralto the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in anASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal (e.g., UE). In thealternative, the processor and the storage medium may reside as discretecomponents in a user terminal.

In one or more example aspects, the functions described may beimplemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof.If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on ortransmitted over as one or more instructions or code on acomputer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computerstorage media and communication media including any medium thatfacilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Astorage media may be any available media that can be accessed by acomputer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readablemedia can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical diskstorage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or anyother medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code inthe form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed bya computer. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readablemedium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website,server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable,twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologiessuch as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiberoptic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such asinfrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of medium.Disk and disc, as used herein, includes compact disc (CD), laser disc,optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray discwhere disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproducedata optically with lasers. Combinations of the above should also beincluded within the scope of computer-readable media.

While the foregoing disclosure shows illustrative aspects of thedisclosure, it should be noted that various changes and modificationscould be made herein without departing from the scope of the disclosureas defined by the appended claims. The functions, steps and/or actionsof the method claims in accordance with the aspects of the disclosuredescribed herein need not be performed in any particular order.Furthermore, although elements of the disclosure may be described orclaimed in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless limitation tothe singular is explicitly stated.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of wireless positioning performed by auser equipment (UE), comprising: determining a positioning measurementof a first multipath component of a radio frequency (RF) signaltransmitted by a transmission-reception point (TRP); determining a firstadditional positioning measurement of a second multipath component ofthe RF signal; determining a second additional positioning measurementof a third multipath component of the RF signal; and transmitting ameasurement report to a location server, the measurement reportincluding at least the positioning measurement, the first additionalpositioning measurement, the second additional positioning measurement,and one or more parameters associated with the first additionalpositioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or moreparameters include: a line-of-sight (LOS) parameter indicating whetherthe first additional positioning measurement and the second additionalpositioning measurement are based on additional hypothesis of areception time of an LOS path between the TRP and the UE, a first LOSparameter indicating whether the first additional positioningmeasurement is based on a first hypothesis of the reception time of theLOS path between the TRP and the UE, a second LOS parameter indicatingwhether the second additional positioning measurement is based on asecond hypothesis of the reception time of the LOS path between the TRPand the UE, or the first LOS parameter and the second LOS parameter. 3.The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters include: anon-line-of-sight (NLOS) parameter indicating whether the firstadditional positioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement are based on NLOS paths between the TRP and the UE, a firstNLOS parameter indicating whether the first additional positioningmeasurement is based on a first NLOS path between the TRP and the UE, asecond NLOS parameter indicating whether the second additionalpositioning measurement is based on a second NLOS path between the TRPand the UE, or the first NLOS parameter and the second NLOS parameter.4. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters include: asignal strength of the second multipath component, a signal strength ofthe third multipath component, or the signal strength of the secondmultipath component and the signal strength of the third multipathcomponent.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more parametersinclude: a path type parameter indicating whether the second multipathcomponent and the third multipath component are believed to be reflectedpaths, scattered paths, or diffracted paths, a first path type parameterindicating whether the second multipath component is believed to be afirst reflected path, a first scattered path, or a first diffractedpath, a second path type parameter indicating whether the thirdmultipath component is believed to be a second reflected path, a secondscattered path, or a second diffracted path, or the first path typeparameter and the second path type parameter.
 6. The method of claim 1,wherein the positioning measurement is a reference signal timedifference (RSTD) measurement or reception-to-transmission (Rx-Tx) timedifference measurement.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the firstadditional positioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement are time of arrival (ToA) measurements, RSTD measurements,Rx-Tx time difference measurements, angle-of-arrival (AoA) measurements,or any combination thereof.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein themeasurement report is a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol(LPP) measurement report.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein the firstadditional positioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement are included in an additional path list information element(IE) in the LPP measurement report.
 10. A method of wireless positioningperformed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: determining an estimatedlocation of a virtual transmission-reception point (TRP) associated witha physical TRP based, at least in part, on one or more times of flight(ToFs) of one or more non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components ofone or more radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted by the physicalTRP; and transmitting, to a positioning entity, the estimated locationof the virtual TRP.
 11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:determining an uncertainty associated with the estimated location of thevirtual TRP; and transmitting the uncertainty to the positioning entitywith the estimated location.
 12. The method of claim 10, wherein theestimated location is transmitted in a location information message fora positioning session with the positioning entity.
 13. The method ofclaim 12, wherein: the positioning entity is a base station, and thelocation information message is a radio resource control (RRC) message.14. The method of claim 12, wherein: the positioning entity is alocation server, and the location information message is a Long-TermEvolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) message.
 15. A method ofwireless positioning performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising:receiving assistance data for a positioning session from a positioningentity, the assistance data including a location of at least onephysical transmission-reception point (TRP) and a location of at leastone virtual TRP associated with the at least one physical TRP, whereinthe at least one virtual TRP appears to transmit one or morenon-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath components of one or more radiofrequency (RF) signals transmitted by the at least one physical TRP; andestimating a location of the UE based, at least in part, on the locationof the physical TRP, the location of the virtual TRP, measurements ofone or more line-of-sight (LOS) multipath components of the one or moreRF signals, and the one or more NLOS multipath components of the one ormore RF signals.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein: the assistancedata further includes an uncertainty associated with the location of thevirtual TRP; and the location of the UE is estimated further based onthe uncertainty associated with the location of the virtual TRP.
 17. Themethod of claim 15, wherein: the positioning entity is a base station,and the assistance data comprises one or more radio resource control(RRC) message.
 18. The method of claim 15, wherein: the positioningentity is a location server, and the assistance data comprises one ormore Long-Term Evolution (LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) messages. 19.A user equipment (UE), comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver;and at least one processor communicatively coupled to the memory and theat least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to:determine a positioning measurement of a first multipath component of aradio frequency (RF) signal transmitted by a transmission-receptionpoint (TRP); determine a first additional positioning measurement of asecond multipath component of the RF signal; determine a secondadditional positioning measurement of a third multipath component of theRF signal; and transmit, via the at least one transceiver, a measurementreport to a location server, the measurement report including at leastthe positioning measurement, the first additional positioningmeasurement, the second additional positioning measurement, and one ormore parameters associated with the first additional positioningmeasurement and the second additional positioning measurement.
 20. TheUE of claim 19, wherein the one or more parameters include: aline-of-sight (LOS) parameter indicating whether the first additionalpositioning measurement and the second additional positioningmeasurement are based on additional hypothesis of a reception time of anLOS path between the TRP and the UE, a first LOS parameter indicatingwhether the first additional positioning measurement is based on a firsthypothesis of the reception time of the LOS path between the TRP and theUE, a second LOS parameter indicating whether the second additionalpositioning measurement is based on a second hypothesis of the receptiontime of the LOS path between the TRP and the UE, or the first LOSparameter and the second LOS parameter.
 21. The UE of claim 19, whereinthe one or more parameters include: a non-line-of-sight (NLOS) parameterindicating whether the first additional positioning measurement and thesecond additional positioning measurement are based on NLOS pathsbetween the TRP and the UE, a first NLOS parameter indicating whetherthe first additional positioning measurement is based on a first NLOSpath between the TRP and the UE, a second NLOS parameter indicatingwhether the second additional positioning measurement is based on asecond NLOS path between the TRP and the UE, or the first NLOS parameterand the second NLOS parameter.
 22. The UE of claim 19, wherein the oneor more parameters include: a signal strength of the second multipathcomponent, a signal strength of the third multipath component, or thesignal strength of the second multipath component and the signalstrength of the third multipath component.
 23. The UE of claim 19,wherein the one or more parameters include: a path type parameterindicating whether the second multipath component and the thirdmultipath component are believed to be reflected paths, scattered paths,or diffracted paths, a first path type parameter indicating whether thesecond multipath component is believed to be a first reflected path, afirst scattered path, or a first diffracted path, a second path typeparameter indicating whether the third multipath component is believedto be a second reflected path, a second scattered path, or a seconddiffracted path, or the first path type parameter and the second pathtype parameter.
 24. The UE of claim 19, wherein the positioningmeasurement is a reference signal time difference (RSTD) measurement orreception-to-transmission (Rx-Tx) time difference measurement.
 25. TheUE of claim 24, wherein the first additional positioning measurement andthe second additional positioning measurement are time of arrival (ToA)measurements, RSTD measurements, Rx-Tx time difference measurements,angle-of-arrival (AoA) measurements, or any combination thereof.
 26. TheUE of claim 19, wherein the measurement report is a Long-Term Evolution(LTE) positioning protocol (LPP) measurement report.
 27. The UE of claim26, wherein the first additional positioning measurement and the secondadditional positioning measurement are included in an additional pathlist information element (IE) in the LPP measurement report.